The Beginning of the Preaching of Jesus in Galilee (Archimandrite Joel Yiannakopoulos)

By Archimandrite Joel Yiannakopoulos

February of the year 28 A.D. until the Passover of 28 A.D.

Matthew 4:12–25; 8:1–4, 14–17; 9:1–17; 13:54–58
Mark 1:14–2:22; 6:1–6
Luke 4:14–5:39
John 4:43–54

The Lord’s public activity in Judea, given that the Forerunner was still present, was semi-official. The Lord departed from the Jordan, where His disciples were baptizing, because His success aroused the envy of the Pharisees, according to the explicit testimony of the Evangelist John, as we have seen. Having departed from there, either then or shortly before His departure, He learned of the imprisonment of the Forerunner. At that point He decided to enter upon His public life in a fully official manner. As a suitable center He chose Galilee, and especially the western shore of the Lake of Gennesaret —Capernaum — far from the center of the Pharisees in Jerusalem, so that He might move more freely among the dense and mixed population there.

Saint Tatiana of Rome Resource Page

St. Tatiana of Rome (Feast Day - January 12)

Verses

 

The always bright skull of Tatiana,

Brought on a bright crown by the sword.

On the twelfth Tatiana was beheaded. 

 

Holy Martyr Tatiana of Rome 

 

January: Day 12: Holy Martyr Tatiana

 

Holy Martyr Tatiana in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church 

 

Homily for the Commemoration of the Holy Martyr Tatiana (Fr. Daniel Sysoev) 

 

The Skull of Saint Tatiana the Martyr of Rome

 

A Journalists Harrowing Escape from Bombardment With the Help of Saint Tatiana

 

 

Holy Martyr Tatiana in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

 

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

Saint Tatiana was from Old Rome during the reign of Alexander (3rd century AD). Her father had served three times as consul of Rome, and according to the order of the Church she held the rank of Deaconess. Because she confessed her faith in Christ, she was brought before the emperor, and when she entered with him into the temple of the idols, by her prayer she shook the idols that were there and cast them to the ground. For this reason she was struck in the face and her head was shaved. Afterwards she was thrown into the fire and to the beasts, from which she emerged unharmed; finally the command was given and her head was cut off.

The hymns of our Church, in order to emphasize the holiness and the glorious end of Saint Tatiana in martyrdom, present to us in a vivid manner what took place at the moment of the beheading of her honorable head: it was the hour of her triumph. As happens in similar cases, angels welcomed her ascent into heaven with applause, while Christ the Almighty, with His all-powerful right hand, crowned the martyr who had struggled lawfully.

Homily for the Commemoration of the Holy Martyr Tatiana (Fr. Daniel Sysoev)

 

Homily for the Commemoration of the Holy Martyr Tatiana 

By Fr. Daniel Sysoev

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit!

I congratulate you all on the feast day of the Holy Martyr Tatiana!

The martyr Tatiana lived in the 3rd century and was a deaconess, that is, she was responsible for the administrative and economic affairs of the Church. She suffered at the hands of the ideology of her own time. In those days Rome was ruled by Emperor Alexander Severus, who supported the unification of all religions. In his private chapel he kept statues of Hercules, Zeus, Jesus Christ, Abraham, and Orpheus. He believed that one should bow to all gods and that people ought to venerate all deities, so that universal reconciliation might be achieved. Saint Tatiana was seized precisely because she refused to venerate all gods; for this “intolerance” she was executed. She is a herald of that intolerance which conquered the world. She refused to worship Apollo, who is mentioned in Holy Scripture as an evil spirit who at the end of times will destroy humanity. She came to the temple of Apollo and by prayer destroyed all the idols, thereby showing that a Christian fears nothing and is not afraid of pagan idols. It is the pagans who fear the divine power that dwells within Christians. If God has revealed Himself in Christ, then there can be no reconciliation of Truth with falsehood.

Prologue in Sermons: January 12

Against Pride

January 12

(A Discourse of Saint Evagrius on the Humble and the Exalted)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

Since the sin of pride has harmful consequences for everyone in general — raising people high and casting them low, and even drawing some into the very abyss of perdition — we therefore, for the sake of removing the proud from this sin and teaching them humility, offer for edification one of the discourses of Saint Evagrius, which we ask you to hear with attention.

Homily Two for the Sunday After Theophany (St. John of Kronstadt)

From the Church of St. Spyridon in Flampouriari, 17th cent.

Homily Two for the Sunday After Theophany
(or Sunday After Illumination)

St. John of Kronstadt

Today’s Sunday is called the Sunday after Illumination, or the day of the week on which one should not occupy oneself with ordinary worldly, earthly affairs, but should do the works that bring salvation to one’s soul — after Illumination, that is, after Baptism, which both formerly and now has been called and is called Illumination, because through Baptism spiritual light is bestowed by God upon our souls, the light of the knowledge of God and of piety. A sign of this even to this day is the lamps or wax candles lit at the baptismal font, as well as the lighted candles held in the hands of the sponsor and the sponsoress. This spiritual light — incorruptible and eternal, communicated to our souls — is Christ our God Himself, the true Light, who enlightens every person coming into the world. Spiritual darkness, however, is sin, or the author and ruler of sin, the prince of darkness, the devil, who darkens and deceives the human race by sin, teaching every sin and drawing man into eternal perdition.

Homily for the Sunday After the Baptism of the Lord (St. Cleopa of Sihastria)

Homily for the Sunday After the Baptism of the Lord

(On the Preaching of the Word of God)

By Saint Cleopa of Sihastria

“From that time Jesus began to preach and to say: Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17).

Beloved faithful,

One of the teachings of today’s Holy Gospel says: “From that time Jesus began to preach and to say: Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). The same words were spoken by Saint John the Baptist when he began to preach in the wilderness of the Jordan: “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:2). The same message was also given to the Holy Apostles when they were sent to preach the gospel, for He said to them: “As you go, preach, saying: The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand” (Matthew 10:7).

Today’s divine Gospel says: “From that time Jesus began to preach…” (Matthew 4:17). But what does “from that time” mean? It means from the time when the holy and great Prophet John the Baptist was arrested and thrown into prison. This truth is shown by today’s Holy Gospel, which says: “Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee” (Matthew 4:12). But did the Savior depart to Galilee out of fear? By no means. Rather, He went to Galilee in order to begin preaching the gospel from there, according to the prophecy of the Prophet Isaiah, who says: “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles. The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned” (Isaiah 9:1; Matthew 4:15–16).

Prologue in Sermons: January 11

The Lord is Especially Merciful to Merciful People

January 11

(From the Life of Venerable Theodosios)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

Both the word of God and the Holy Fathers teach us to remember that God is especially merciful to merciful people. "He who gives to the poor," says Solomon, "will not lack" (Proverbs 28:27). "He who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully," teaches the Holy Apostle Paul (2 Cor. 9:6). "What you have given to the hungry, you will receive back in abundance," adds Saint Basil the Great ("On the Rich"). All this, brethren, is completely true; for the truth of what both the word of God and the Holy Fathers say regarding God's special mercies to the merciful can be demonstrated by deeds themselves. And today, for your edification, we will demonstrate it by deeds.

Venerable Theodosios, abbot of the Monastery of the Theotokos near Jerusalem, was, as the author of his life tells us, an eye for the blind, a guide for the lame, a shelter for the defenseless, and clothing for the naked. He visited the sick, providing clothing for some who came to him, feeding others, and addressing the needs of still others. It should be noted that he established the custom of feeding a hundred people daily at the monastery. 

The Mystagogy Resource Center Now Has a Bookstore

Dear Readers:

As some of you may have noticed, yesterday, January 7th, on the feast the Synaxis of Saint John the Baptist, my patron saint and in honor of my Name Day, I launched a bookstore to serve the needs of the Mystagogy Resource Center. I called it Apollos Bookstore after one of the Seventy Apostles, Saint Apollos, whose ministry is explained in Acts 18:24-28. 

In Acts 18 we read how Apollos was an Alexandrian Jew who was "an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures." We also read that he "had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord." What connects Apollos with John the Baptist is that we are informed how when Aquila and Priscilla heard him preaching to the Jews in Ephesus, he had only up until that time known about the baptism of John the Baptist, which was a baptism of repentance, which means that he had not yet known of the baptism of the Holy Spirit through Jesus. After being instructed by Aquila and Priscilla, Apollos went to Corinth, and having received the Holy Spirit, "he vigorously refuted the Jews publicly, showing from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ." When the Apostle Paul afterwards arrived in Ephesus, he found there twelve Jews who had been baptized by Apollos with the baptism of John the Baptist, and had never heard of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Paul therefore instructed them and baptized them in the name of Jesus so that they could receive the Holy Spirit through Paul laying his hands on them.

I named the bookstore after Apollos and placed his icon as its logo because he is a model for any Orthodox Christian ministry and a model for each individual Orthodox Christian striving to educate themselves and others into the unfathomable depths and mysteries of the gospel.

Initially my goal is to publish a new unique booklet on a monthly or bi-monthly basis, and eventually I will be publishing books. Every booklet will be priced at $20 which will cover all expenses and help support the work of the Mystagogy Resource Center. My hope is that these will be an added incentive to support my work.

You can view the new bookstore by clicking on one of the banners on this site or at this link. For now I only have three booklets which I previously offered. You can purchase through Paypal, Venmo or any other major credit card. The covers of the books currently on display are temporary and will be replaced with the right covers soon.

Thank you for all your support and a Blessed New Year to all,

John Sanidopoulos